


Finding Our Place

by mutanitys (chekov)



Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Actors, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Overprotective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-11
Updated: 2016-07-11
Packaged: 2018-07-22 23:21:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7457689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chekov/pseuds/mutanitys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Charles knows Erik just wants the very best roles for him, but having a manager that doubles as a boyfriend can sometimes mean fussing. And Charles wants Erik to stop fussing over him, at least for a little while.</p><p>A fic in which Charles is a rising actor and Erik is his overprotective (but very loving) manager/agent.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Finding Our Place

Charles is rather impartial towards the action of slamming doors in one’s face, but at that particular moment he feels a smug satisfaction in pushing the door behind him especially hard and hoping it’ll smack right in Erik’s face. 

Unfortunately (or, fortunately for Erik) he manages to hold the door off the very second before the impact and saves himself from the throes of a broken nose. 

“What the hell,” he growls in annoyance. “Charles! The car is that way!“ 

“You don’t seem to be taking this — me being upset — very seriously, Erik!” Charles cries in frustration. “Though why I expect such explicit displays of sympathy in the first place, for the love of all things good and pure, is a beyond any reasonable explanation.“ 

“You’re talking nonsense,” Erik demonstrates his apathy perfectly as he glances at his phone, frowning when he notices the long list of meetings and events Charles still needs to attend to. “Keep at it and we’ll be late for the premiere tonight.“ 

“Oh, I would never miss that. It is, after all, my first premiere for my first movie in probably a hundred years.“   

His jab must have caught Erik’s attention, because now he’s fixing Charles with a hard stare, half a challenge and half an exasperated inquiry. “What are you so mad about, Charles?“ 

At this, Charles only sighs and purses his lips, indicative of him contemplating on the best choice of words in order to perfectly convey his thoughts. When the car arrives, Charles slides into the backseat, and after a beat of hesitation Erik shuffles in beside him. Clearly they need to talk. 

Thankful for the privacy the divider provides, Erik asks again, “What is it?“ 

“Honestly, it’s a miracle how I manage to land jobs with a manager like you." 

“Manager like — what? Don’t be like that. You didn’t blow that audition." 

“No, I’m pretty sure I did the moment you decided to open that mouth of yours.” Charles drops his gaze, glares at Erik’s lips like they personally offend him. “Threatening every potential employer… how we’re not stuck in jail yet is beyond me." 

“You’re being dramatic.” Erik tries to lean in and capture Charles’ lips with his own. Their lips meet only for a fleeting moment before Charles promptly shoves him away and snarls, annoyance seeping out of his every pore. 

“ _You_ were." 

The usually stern, taut lines around Erik’s eyebrows subtly melt away to reveal another expression — concern, perhaps, or unadulterated determination. He leans over to place a quick kiss on Charles’ cheek in an attempt to placate his frayed nerves. “Look, I just want everyone to know how good you are as an actor. And those who fail to see that — well, they need a push in the right direction." 

“You only think that because you’re my _manager_." 

“No. I really do. You have a way with this,” he taps Charles’ forehead twice, “That allows you to create any atmosphere you want on set an on camera, become emotionally engaged with the character you play and act with, embody each stage direction like they were written specifically for you. You were born to do what you do Charles, and it’s a damn shame that many film-makers don’t see that." 

“Well,” Charles brushes Erik’s fingers away from his head, but clutches at their tips anyway. “Maybe they’ll be able to see better without you breathing down on their necks all the time." 

Erik snorts. Charles turns away, watching the roads blur outside his window.   

“And some people might consider that cheating, you know. So it’s probably not the wisest decision to announce it before every audition." 

“Cheating?” Erik shifts in his seat to fully face Charles and his eyebrows crease in a serious manner. “Would you call someone born with excellent co-ordination a cheater at sports like football? Or would someone with exceptional flexibility and grace a cheater at dance? Can someone whose brain was wired to have their logics fine-tuned from birth be classified a cheater at Maths?” 

“Erik —" 

"Just because you were born with an advantage doesn’t make you a cheater, Charles.” He squeezes lightly at Charles’ fingers. “It just makes you better than everyone else." 

Erik braces himself for another retort — Charles never runs out of those, it seems — but instead what he gets is a small, amused chuckle and the satisfying sag of Charles’ shoulders, a sign of the actor finally allowing himself to relax. “I appreciate your belief in me, Erik. It’s doing wonders for my ego." 

“Surely, that is what I’m paid to do. Aside from arranging every single event of your professional life,” but there is a smile of Erik’s lips, too, albeit faint. “Tux fitting is in fifteen minutes, hair and make-up is not for another hour or so. And at seven PM we’ll be driving to the venue — seven sharp, mind." 

“Fifteen minutes. So there’s ample time for a quick daytime drink?" 

Erik sighs resignedly. “Just get something from the convenience store.”

  


*  


  
  
Charles is hardly a struggling actor. In fact, he’s one of the most praised and admired young actors in the industry, having won an abundance of small-scale film awards and nominated for the Academy Awards, BAFTA and the Golden Globes once or twice each (and winning once. It was a great night for both Erik and Charles). But the fact is that as much as men and women of all age groups are lusting over him, they are also severely deprived of him due to his limited filmography. 

The films he manages to land a role in are few and far inbetween, despite them receiving nothing but stellar reviews and accolades, which have led many to speculate that Charles Xavier possesses an uncanny ability to pick out the very best scripts as an addition to his telepathic skills. He personally feels that the sparsity of his films can be explained by the sheer pickiness of his manager, who picks and chooses what auditions he sees fit for him, and his intimidating aura that seem to deter any potential workmates away very quickly. 

Though Charles is very thankful for his career, he can’t help but thirst for diversity in his acting experience — he wants to try out many things, put himself out of his comfort zone. 

And not audition under the scrutiny of his loving but overbearing manager, Erik Lehnsherr.  
  


   


*

   


   


Erik wakes up to exactly zero texts from Charles. 

Usually he’d send Erik a quick _Good morning_ text to make sure he’s safe and alive and not lying around wasted in some odd street, but for some reason Erik’s notification centre is absent of any Charles-esque presence, which leads him to believe that the actor may really be lying around wasted in some odd street. 

So he spends a better part of the afternoon attempting to call Charles, to no avail. He then receives an urgent e-mail from one of a PR staff on a talk show Charles is supposed to feature in two nights’ time, which means his Charles dilemma is pushed to the side a little. 

It’s not only until five past two in the afternoon does Erik hear a knock on his door. 

“Where have you _been!_ ” Erik demands, growling down at the sight of Charles in the doorway. “You didn’t answer a single voicemail or call! I was… I was worried!“ 

To his surprise, Charles only beams right back at him without a slight hint of wariness and proceeds to saunter into Erik’s apartment like he hasn’t disappeared off of his manager’s radar for nearly seven entire hours. 

“Morning, Erik darling, I missed you too." 

“Don’t fuck around,” Erik slams the magazine Charles is about to pick up back down on the coffee table. “You tell me where you were first." 

Charles only throws his head back and laughs, looping an arm around Erik’s neck. “Don’t get so worked up!” At Erik’s sharp glare, he hesitates a little, looking off to the side. “Promise you won’t get mad?" 

The only reply he’s dignified with is a classic Erik deadpan stare.   

“I mean, you won’t blow up and throw all your kitchen knives at me, kind of mad?" 

“Promise." 

Something nudges at Erik’s thoughts, which are currently muddled swirls of varying degrees of disapproval and worry. Then images start to flash through his mind — a little vague at first, but when Erik closes his eyes and focuses on receiving Charles’ thoughts better they become a lot clearer. 

Charles is walking into a tall building after hailing a cab, decently cleaned up with an air of freshness to his gait. He enters a spacious room, at one end of which sits four people with pens in their hands and expectant expressions. 

It’s a casting audition. 

The surprise on their faces is transparent, and Erik knows whatever Charles is auditioning for, it is hardly on par with Hollywood blockbusters decked out in Oscar-winning scriptwriters as part of their team. It’s more likely to be an indie film from a start-up company which would never have dreamed of hiring an actor in such high demand as Charles Xavier. But they’re not about to turn him away, and Charles introduces himself before he takes his place in the middle of the room. 

Then the memory ends. 

Erik blinks his eyes open, a little disoriented by the sensation and only getting a better grip around reality when he sees the crystal clear blue of Charles’ eyes, piercing in the way they seem to anticipate a reaction. 

“Well,” Erik clears his throat. “How did it go?" 

“I think I have a very good chance of landing the role." 

Erik nods dumbly. “You… uh… You think you’ll like it? The role?" 

Charles rolls his eyes, smiling all the while. “I wouldn’t have auditioned for it if I didn’t.” He flops back onto Erik’s sofa, stretching his limbs like a giant cat. “Sorry I didn’t let you know beforehand, but I knew you’d freak out over it. And it’s not that I don’t appreciate you, Erik — trust me, that is the last thing I want you to think. But really, I just wanted to do something by myself for once, kind of… get out there and take a risk, you know?" 

Erik knows that, very much. After all, when he first discovered a penchant for strict, structural way of business, landing a job in his field of work was very much a gamble. Erik knew all about wanting to take a risk.   

“i’m just glad you’re happy.” He frowns. “But make sure you text next time." 

Impatiently, Charles waves a dismissal hand around. “Yeah, yeah, but don’t I rate a cuddle now? It’s been a long day." 

“We should order take-out to celebrate. I can cancel that magazine interview and reschedule it for tomorrow, we both deserve a break.”   

In the warm, steady arms of his boyfriend and manager, Charles can only sigh contentedly and breathe in the familiar, homey scent of Erik’s shirt.   

“Absolutely perfect.”

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr: mutanitys
> 
> Please come and talk to me about marvel/xmen trash xo


End file.
